FI

I sent a payment today to my student loan company for $100. It felt like throwing a glass of water on a burning building. But that’s the exactly the attitude I’m trying to break.

Yes, right now, $100 toward my $47,584.54 student loan debt felt like taking a drop of water out of the ocean. But it’s $100 that’s out of the running for all that compound interest.

I’m trying to balance wanting to invest for the future, travel like a mofo, and get rid of all this damn debt. My student loan has an APR that will make you wince, so get ready for it: 6.75%. Any investment I could make may or may not have that type of return. But putting $100 in an investment account isn’t going to do me any good until I can wrangle the cost of my previous education.

It’s so weird that I could theoretically pay off this loan for the rest of my life. And I guess some people are OK with that. But I’m not. I want to get this debt off my plate ASAP. Even if I pay off $1000 a month, it’ll take 48 months, AKA 4 years – and that’s assuming no interest! It’s simply got to happen sooner than that.

I’m reading this book, Walden on Wheels, about Ken Ilgunas’ journey with this exact same thing. It’s such an inspiration. I highly encourage you to check it out.

I’m about to get real aggressive with this real fast. I know I’m not the first person to grapple with this crippled system, but until I get this debt outta here, I can’t feasibly invest for my future or buy a house. Once I get into the principal a bit, maybe I can balance my goals a little better. But not now. This is my first priority.

I listed some stuff on eBay, I’m selling my books, and I work part-time for a courier service which nets me about $1000 a month, in addition to my salary of $50,000 a year. But now that I’m in super payoff mode, I want to find a way to generate even more money. I’ve been wanting to get my CFP certification, which costs only about $5000. But that’s now five months of loan payments… and thinking in terms of loan payments is the mindset I have to be in for the next couple of years.

I can’t stop traveling. That’s why I have so many cards that generate points and let me go places for free. In fact, I’m off to Alaska next week (on American in economy, but except thoughts/trip report nonetheless!). There is marginal cost, even for free travel, but I have to seek new experiences or I’ll wither away inside.

I want to chronicle, as so many others have done, my climb up the mountain of raging student loan debt. This blog will hold me accountable, motivate me, and hopefully allow me to learn some nuggets of wisdom that I can pass along.

I’ll post regular “Financial Snapshots.” In a decade, I want my net worth to go from $-50,000 to $+500,000. Let’s do this.

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Harlan Vaughn

Hello and welcome to Out and Out! My name is Harlan – I’m a points and miles enthusiast who loves to travel. I am interested in personal finance, the power of positive thinking, and the extraordinary journeys that make life worth living.
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